Chapter 8
Bey sat crookedly in his seat, scratching at his stiff, broom-like dull blonde hair, and scanned me with his pale green eyes. In front of him was a heavy mahogany desk, neatly organized with various documents.
“I came to arrange a clandestine departure to the neutral nation of K.”
“If it’s for both of you, it’ll be 100 gold.”
“No, just me. This person is my escort.”
“Ah, then just one. That’ll be 60 gold. We do give a bit of a discount if both go at once, you see.”
What a generous discount. I shook my head and asked,
“When’s the earliest date I could leave?”
Bey pulled out a stack of papers, wet his finger with saliva, and began flipping through them. He let out a sigh as he removed a sheet.
“Are you in a hurry? If you’d come yesterday, you could have left immediately. But there are no ships for the next week. There’s exactly one leaving after a week, from the Rowald dock, departing at 8 PM. It’s scheduled to stop at Teheran Island before heading to K. The voyage will take about two months. Shall we arrange it for that one?”
Rowald dock was about five hours away from here. Four or five hours is roughly the same.
“If you’re in a real hurry, there’s also one leaving Veil Harbor in three days.”
Veil Harbor was in the south; it would take an entire day by carriage just to reach it. I didn’t like that option—Kid could show up and block the route, making it risky.
“Let’s go with the one from Rowald. How much would it be if you also forged an ID?”
“150 gold. The machines for forging IDs are very expensive.”
150 gold was about a year’s living expenses for a common four-person family. But if I considered it the price of survival, it wasn’t too bad.
Well, it wasn’t my money, so the cost didn’t matter.
I took a few jewels from my pouch. They were probably worth more than 150 gold, but I planned to pay it all. At least this way, I could get a small revenge on Kid.
“I’ll drain your fortune little by little,” I thought.
I felt sorry for Seniel, but I hoped he’d consider it payment.
Bey examined the jewels with a cylindrical metal gem tester, inspecting them from every angle.
“You’ve paid more than 150 gold to buy these, so that should be enough.”
“Yeah, I think so too. Then wait a moment. I just got a good machine, so I’ll forge your ID quickly.”
This place was the largest broker, and the division of labor was excellent. I waited quietly, and Bey soon returned with a convincing ID.
It bore a face similar to mine and a randomly assigned name.
“When you reach the port, someone from our side will meet you. He might be a bit ugly and have braided facial hair, but if you say you’re from Bey’s teahouse, he’ll take care of you. The trip will be comfortable and safe.”
I nodded roughly and got up. Ezette, who had been standing behind me, followed.
After leaving Bey’s teahouse and reaching the street, she didn’t say much. I knew she was quiet, but not this silent. Maybe she was exhausted from pleasing high-ranking people all day.
I had intended to tell her that if she kept this a secret, I would reward her generously.
“…Are you betraying God’s will?”
Suddenly, Ezette mentioned divine prophecy. I didn’t believe in fate, so why ask that? It felt ominous.
Ezette quickly realized she’d asked an unnecessary question and apologized.
“Sorry.”
“No, it’s fine.”
I glanced at her, wondering why she asked. Then I looked ahead again.
“If you want to live, there’s nothing you can’t do.”
She said it deliberately, just as she often did in the novels. She had once boldly threatened the Ambassador and even worn a cursed necklace without hesitation while disguised as her brother.
Ezette didn’t respond immediately. After a moment, she said,
“I’ll support you.”
Though trying not to show it, I had been anxious that my judgment of her might have been wrong. I wiped the sweat from my palms on my robe and let out a silent sigh of relief.
“Support, huh.”
I doubted there was anyone else in this world who would cheer for me. She was probably the only one on my side, and on the day of my escape, she could even serve as a protective shield.
Feeling certain of her support, my tension released. A deflated laugh escaped me. I teased her, albeit mischievously, for toying with me.
“Can a paladin support someone betraying God’s will?”
“I’m not supporting a betrayal of God’s will.”
“What does that even mean?”
“But if you interpret it that way, then we’ll go with that.”
Playing with words.
We left Rowald Street, and I said goodbye.
“Thanks for today. Keep this a secret, and can we meet again in a week? I’ll send the time and place by mail. You could just take the reward, but I want to thank you in person.”
I had to meet her directly to give her the evidence.
“You don’t need to bother yourself, given how busy you are.”
“Are you refusing my favor? Or should I interpret it as meaning I can wait at the meeting place and just leave a large sum there?”
Ezette let out a shallow sigh at my stubborn tone.
“I’ll come.”
“Good. Let’s go then. It was a pleasure.”
I tried to leave Rowald Street for another street. With a week until my departure, I planned to buy protective gear to defend myself.
I tied my hair tightly and removed earrings and necklaces. I needed direct protection to avoid Kid grabbing me.
“….”
“You’re not leaving?”
Ezette followed, perplexed at my choice of streets.
“Where’s the carriage?”
“I’ll take a regular carriage back. And I don’t intend to return to the mansion yet.”
I didn’t know when I’d go home, so I planned to use a public carriage.
Ezette gave me a suspicious look and asked sharply,
“Where are you going this time?”
“I’ll go somewhere safe. Don’t worry.”
“If anything happens, I’ll be held responsible first, so that won’t do.”
True to her novel counterpart, she spoke frankly.
Meeting her had been a lucky day for me, but I imagined it was unlucky for her. I scratched my cheek, noticing how tired she looked.
“I’m going to buy self-defense tools. The street just a bit ahead is safe. Nothing should happen there.”
From Bibi’s memories, that street was crowded with students, including children. Nothing should happen there.
Yet Ezette didn’t back down.
“I’ll escort you.”
She wouldn’t yield. Seeing her so insistent, I felt a pang of guilt. I wanted to tell her to go, but her eyes suggested she wouldn’t obey.
‘If it’s about her livelihood, she definitely won’t give up.’
In a society with a strict hierarchy, that explained her insistence.
Feeling sorry, I thought, ‘…Fine, I’ll just buy what I need quickly and leave.’
“…Alright. I’ll entrust this to you.”
Being a paladin, Ezette was an excellent advisor for selecting protective gear.
“This won’t be noticeable from the outside, and it’s flexible enough for activity.”
She was kind, paying attention even when it was inconvenient.
“This artifact will protect against close-range attacks. Rings are better than necklaces.”
I exchanged all the jewels I’d brought from Seniel’s mansion for gold and bought protective gear quickly, including a few soft armor-like items and the artifact.
There was also something resembling a stun device. Technically, it used holy energy instead of electricity to stun humans.
‘Will it work on Kid?’
Ezette said it worked on priests, but whether it would affect Kid was uncertain.
Grateful for the chance to defend myself against Kid, I thanked Ezette sincerely.
“I think I’ll be safe thanks to you. I owe you so much. Here’s a small gift.”
Ezette kept glancing toward the bookstore side.
In the novel, she sometimes stared blankly at book covers, remembering her brother who lived with books.
I tried giving her a poetry book. She stared at it quietly, seeming to relax a little.
Seeing her gaze fixed on the book, I awkwardly said,
“I thought you liked books, so I got one. If not, just use it as decoration. I’ll properly thank you next week. Thanks. I’ll go now.”
I didn’t wait for her response and got into the carriage I had chosen. She looked up belatedly. I waved from inside the carriage.
She seemed to want to say something, but the carriage left quickly.
Sitting on the hard wooden seat, fatigue hit me all at once.
‘Will I go out again tonight?’
I couldn’t let my guard down. It was time to return to hell.
I watched the carriage disappear from sight with blue eyes. Once it vanished, I felt as if today had been unreal. If the book wasn’t in my hands, I might have thought I was finally losing my mind.
Ezette lowered her gaze back to the book.
‘Did I stare at the book for that long?’
She hadn’t realized the end of her gaze, yet the woman who’d known me only a few hours noticed my behavior—quite amusing.
‘Bibi Jezrine, was it?’
Now married, she would be Bibi McCurt.
He had no particular talent for remembering people. If he wanted, he could force himself to remember, but he didn’t care. People, life, anything—none of it mattered.
Had she not acted oddly at the ceremony, he wouldn’t have even noticed her today. Nor would he be observing this strange escort.
Yesterday, as always, he had stood empty-eyed in the Ambassador’s hall. At the very front, rightmost corner, he watched today’s protagonists impassively.
Seniel, the Ambassador, was familiar to him, eliciting no particular feeling. He only thought Seniel seemed unusually anxious today.
He turned his eyes to the pink-haired woman. Entering nervously, she suddenly looked at the officiant with hopeful eyes.
‘Is fate really that kind?’
Fate, that damned thing.
He was too tired to love his fate.
Born poor, raised by a vain mother and gambling-obsessed father, he had grown up hearing constant complaints about his family.
He had buried two siblings—one lost to poverty, one to disease. Alone and unwelcome in the paladin order.
Thinking about it only gave him a headache. He stared at the void as prayer time approached.
His eyes reflected the solemn scenery of the temple.
He did not pray. He only observed those who did.
‘Why not pray?’
Everyone else, except him, prayed.
So the scene before him was unfamiliar.
The bride, joyful when entering, now looked anxious, almost trembling. Fortunately, she seemed not to notice him.
‘What is she trying to do?’
Was she trying to escape?
She carefully held the hem of her dress, trembling, and took a deep breath before turning back.
He unconsciously supported her. He didn’t know her situation or why she acted like this.
Her act of defying God’s word alone earned his quiet support.
When she took a step, he unconsciously held his breath.
“Khm.”
But the chance passed quickly. She adjusted her dress nonchalantly.
Even after her escape attempt, he couldn’t look away.
Was it her beauty? The way the white dress suited her?
No. He was curious why her eyes were filled with tears.
But that was it.
‘Even if I’m curious, her life will be better than mine.’
Her defiance might just be because she had left her loved ones behind.
Thinking so, his interest in her faded.
Love was for the satisfied.
By the next day, he had forgotten even that he had been curious.
Even if he were to meet her again on the same shabby street, nothing would change.
Yet, unlike yesterday, her bright, lively gaze caught his attention.
‘Going alone.’
Not with someone else—alone. The way she seemed to delight simply in rejecting fate piqued his curiosity.
He quickly dismissed the curiosity.
‘She’ll be leaving in a week anyway.’
It was time to return to reality: deep in debt, surrounded by enemies, with no one to help him.
He turned away, holding the poetry book.
